Musical instrument.



PATENTED AUG. 8, 1905.

D. (3. SPURGEON. MUSICAL INSTRUMENT.

APPLICATION 'fILnD APB. 1, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

;D. fipur'aon Inventor Httomegs ANDREW. a. GRAHAM 00., PHOYO-LIYHOGRAPNERS. WASHINGTON. n. eV 4 PATENTED AUG. 8, 1905.

D. G. SPURGEON.

, MUSIGAL'INSTRUMENT.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 1, 1904.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 JDIZLjODfCQOH Inventor b I r :I I! I 1 l/lllillllllll Witnesses ANDREW av GRAN/M cu PHOTO LITHDGRAPHE UNITED STATES PATENT OEEIGE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 8, 1905.

Application filed April 1, 1904. Serial No. 201,105.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it know n that LDEE CALVERT SPURGEON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Edina, in the county of Knox and State of Missouri, have invented a new and useful Musical Instrument, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to musical instruments, and particularly to stringed instruments of the zither or harp type.

The essential object of the invention is to provide such character of instruments with two sets of strings, one set arranged to be pneumatically operated and the other arranged to be picked or operated by hand, whereby the air or melody may be played upon one set of strings and an accompaniment played upon the other ,set.

It is furthermore designed to have the pneumatically-operated parts of the instrument capable of actuation by the breath of the player in order that at least one of the hands of the player may be free to pick or manipulate the other set of strings.

A still further object of the invention is to arrange for conveniently directing the breath of the player to the respective pneumaticallyoperated strings in order that the latter may be effectually played upon without constantly shifting the position of the instrument, whereby the latter may always remain stationary upon a table or other suitable support in a substantially horizontal position with the valves of the pneumatic device in position to quickly respond to the breath of the player when blown into or withdrawn from the air chambers or passages.

With these and other objects in view the present invention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts, as will be hereinafter more fully described, shown in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes in the form, proportion, size, and minor details may be made within the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a top plan view of a stringed musical instrument embodying the features of the present invention. 2'is a detail longitudinal sectional view thereof on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is acrosssectional view on the line3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a detail top plan view showing the relation between one of the air-chambers and a pair of adjacent strings. Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional view on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a detail sectional view on the line 6 6 of Fig. 2.

Like characters of reference designate corresponding parts in each and every figure of the drawings.

The body of the present instrument is in the nature of a sound box or chamber, the shape of which is immaterial although shown in the accompanying drawings as substantially heart-shaped, but in any event comprises a flat base or bottom 1, a similar top 2, and a marginal side piece 3, to which the top and bottom are glued or otherwise secured. In the top of the body are the usual sound-openings 4, located at opposite sides of the longitudinal center of the body and preferably circular in shape.

A set or series of substantially parallel strings 5 are strung transversely across the top of the body, with their left-hand ends secured to suitable stationary pins 6, projected from the top of the body at the left-hand edge thereof, while the opposite ends of the strings are connected to any common or.preferred form of turning keys or pins 7, carried by the' top of the body, whereby the tension of the individual strings may be varied for convenience in turning the instrument. Suitable bridges 8 and 9 are carried by the top of the instrument, so as to support the end portions of the strings adjacent the respective sets of pins 6 and 7.

Disposed diagonally across the set of strings" ing the same and for replacing broken strings,

the diagonal set of strings being disposed in a plane above that of the strings 5, so as to be entirely exposed for access thereto in picking or otherwise playing upon the said diagonal set of strings. In this connection it will here be stated that the transverse set of strings 5 are designed to be pneumatically operated and the diagonal set of strings to be operated by hand, wherefore it is necessary to locate the diagonal set of strings above the other set 1n order that they may not be obstructed thereby.

As hereinbefore indicated, it is proposed to pneumaticallyoperate the set of strings 5, and this feature is carried out by means of a series of air-passages 16, which pierce thefront end of the body and communicate with valved air-chambers,the valves of which are arranged to actuate suitable picks for engagement with the strings to vibrate the same, and thereby sound theinstrument. This series of air-passages, as clearly indicated in Fig. 1 of the drawings, is made up of individual tubes or passages which increase in length from the left-hand end of the series in order that each passage may cooperate with a pair of strings in advance of and adjacent to the pair of strings with which the adjacent left-hand passage cooperates.

In view of the fact that the valved air chambers are duplicates in construction and operation it is deemed sufficient to describe in detail only one of such chambers, wherefore reference will now be had more particu larly to Figs, 3, 1, and 5 of the drawings.

In the figures referred to it will be noted that the inner end of the air tube or passage 16 is provided with an upstanding chamber 17, the lower end of which has a port or valveseat 18 in communication with the passage, and this port or seat is controlled by means of a valve 19, working within the chamber and provided with an upstanding stem 20, which is non-circular in cross-section and works through a correspondingly -shaped guide opening 21 in the otherwise closed top of the chamber. In advance of the chamber 17 is a pendent chamber 22, which has its upper end 1n communication with the passage and has its outer end provided with an inlet-port or valveseat 23, which is controlled by a valve 24:, working within the chamber and provided with a valve-stem 25, rising to the height of the stem 20. For convenience in guiding the stem 25 the pendent chamber 22 is extended at the upper side of the passsage 16 and provided in its otherwise closed top with a guideopening 26 for the stem. Each of the valvestems always projects above the top of the upstanding chamber 17 and is provided with a laterally-directed pick member 27, which has its inner end pivotally connected or hinged to the stem, as indicated at 28, in such a manner as to permit of the pick being swung or tilted upwardly, but held against downward movement from its normal substantially horizontal position, This feature is accomplished by means of a shoulder 29, carried by the stem and disposed in contact with the under side of the pick, so as to normally hold the latter in its horizontal position. Atasuitable distance above the pick there is an upper shoulder 30,

the under side of which is beveled or inclined upwardly and outwardly and disposed to form a stop lying in the path of theupward-swing ing movement of the pick, so as to limit the swing thereof.

It will now be understood that one of the strings 5 is disposed above and in the path of the outer portion of the pick which is actuated by the stem 20, so that when air is blown into the passage 16 the valve 19 will be elevated thereby and the pick consequently elevated and brushed across the string, whereby the latter will be set in vibration and the instrument sounded. During this operation of the stem 20 the other stem 25 and its pick will of course remain stationary and inactive, for the reason that the inrush of air into the passage 16 will tend to hold the valve 24: at its lower limit. To actuate the other pick, air is withdrawn from the tube or passage 16, whereby the valve 19 is maintained at its lower limit and the valve 24 is elevated and its pick is also elevated into engagement with the adjacent string. In each instance the valve and its pick falls to its normal position by gravity when the air-pressure ceases.

In view of the fact that the pick would actuate the string a second time upon its return movement if permitted to return in its normal horizontal position I propose to trip the pick into a position to pass downwardly out of contact with the string, preferably by tilting the pick upwardly in order that its free outer end may clear the string during its downward movement. This feature is accomplished by means of a spring-guard or trip member 31, carried externally by the adjacent airchamber and projected above the top of the latter with its upper portion bowed over and disposed in close proximity to the upper side of the string, whereby during the downward movement of the pick the free end thereof strikes the guard or trip and is thereby tilted vertically and passes down across the string withoutactuatingthesame. Iheuppershoulder 30 is intended to limit the upward tilting of the pick under the influence of the trip, and after the pick escapes from the trip it gravitates into engagement with the lower shoulder 29, so as to be again supported in its normal horizontal position.

To facilitate manipulation of the several pneumatic devices without constantly shifting the instrument, I employ a mouthpiece 32 in the form of an oblong box, preferably of hard rubber or celluloid, with its front and rear sides open for the reception of the upper or outer ends of flexible tubes 33, the lower ends of which are provided with metallic nip ples 3 1 of a size and shape to snugly and removably fit the open outer ends of the tubes or air-passages 16, carried by the body of the instrument. These flexible tubes are preferably formed of rubber with braided or fabric covers, the covers of adjacent tubes being stitched or otherwise connected without interfering with the'flexibility of the tubes,

thereby to prevent entangling of the tubes during the manipulation of the instrument and also when fitting said tubes to the airpassages 16.

In using the present instrument the mouthpiece 82 is placed in the mouth of the player and manipulated in the manner of an ordi-- nary harmonica, so as to vibrate the strings 5 through the medium of the pneumatic devices to play the air or melody, and the diagonal set of strings is picked by hand to produce an accompaniment to the air or melody played upon the set of strings 5. It will here be explained that the accompaniment set of strings is divided into groups of four strings each, and each group is arranged to produce a chord differing from the chords of the other groups, the chords selected being governed by the pitch-0f the series of strings 5.

Having thus described the construction and operation of my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, 1s

1; In a musical instrument, a string, an airchamber having a valve, a valve-stem, and a string-actuating pick carried by the valvestem. p

2. In amusical instrument, the combination with a pair of strings, of a blow-tube, an air pick pivoted to the rod between the shoulders and normally supported upon the lower shoulder, and a trip located in the path of the return movement of the pick to swing the latter upon its pivotal support out of engagement with the string, the upper shoulder lying in the path of the swinging movement of the pick to limit said movement.

4. In amusical instrument, a sounding-box, a pair of strings stretched across the box, a blow-tube piercing the box, air-chambers communicating with the blow-tube, a valve controlling the communication between the blowtube and one of the air-chambers, the other air-chamber having a port in communication with the external air, a valve for said port, stems carried by the respective valves and working through the tops of the air-chambers, and picks carried by the upper ends of the stems and in cooperative relation with the respective strings.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

DEE CALVERT SPURGEON.

Witnesses:

E. O. PARSONS, THos. ODoNNELL. 

